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chapter 14
Canis Escliffe.
At the academy, was there even a single student who didn’t know her name?
The failed daughter of the duke’s house.
The eternal last place.
An impurity who shamelessly forced her way into the Academy’s Department of Magic despite being a non-magician.
Those were the titles that always followed her.
But that wasn’t what shocked him most right now.
“She’s not surprised, even seeing me like this.”
Even after seeing his bloody, tattered appearance, Canis Escliffe neither screamed nor fainted. She just looked at him as calmly as if she’d come across a passerby.
“Not getting on?”
“…No, I should. Thanks for the kindness, Lady.”
He looked up at Canis, who was urging him, and answered slowly.
“Have your coachman come up too.”
“Oh, heavens, no! I’m fine riding in the luggage compartment.”
“Really? Then suit yourself.”
Canis didn’t insist twice and returned to her seat. Aiden, climbing into the carriage, sat across from her and glanced at the girl by her side, his eyes sharpening.
“You’re fine even after seeing me like this? And that maid next to you is…?”
“She’s my sister.”
Aiden stiffened at her words. It was well-known that the Escliffe duke’s children were only the eldest daughter Canis and the illegitimate son Claude.
But another girl?
“Could she be another hidden illegitimate child of the duke?”
Without thinking too deeply, he quickly apologized.
“My apologies, Lady Escliffe. I didn’t recognize her and spoke rudely.”
“Oh, no, you don’t need to apologize… But, are you badly hurt?”
The girl asked in worry, having seen nothing since Canis had quickly covered her eyes.
“Don’t worry, May. That blood isn’t his. But you—”
Canis cut off her concern.
Her blue eyes, glowing like cold flames, locked onto Aiden.
A strange pressure.
It was certainly unusual.
Her gaze was sharp, yes, but a swordmaster had no reason to feel threatened by an ordinary person.
And Canis Escliffe was supposed to be a non-magician…
“You’re… a swordmaster, aren’t you?”
His thoughts broke off there.
Aiden jerked his head up, and his eyes met those blazing blue ones.
A man drenched in blood, appearing with corpses at his feet.
Her hunter’s intuition told her clearly—he was a strong one.
Moreover, at this point in time, if someone wore the academy uniform, had black hair, and wielded a sword, the possibilities narrowed to one.
Aiden Grace.
The illegitimate half-brother of the male lead, Deon Grace—a rival of sorts.
But his role wasn’t that of a typical second male lead or villain.
An extra.
An expendable character whose pitiful death left the heroine a clue about the mastermind.
And now that very extra stood before her.
Originally, he was one of the strongest in the world.
In the original novel The Shunned Noble Lady, the setting was one where magicians outclassed swordsmen.
No matter how strong, sheer numbers won battles. When the sky rained down magical bombardments, knights became meaningless.
A nation’s true power lay in how many magicians it could field.
But there was one exception—the swordmaster.
It was only after Aiden’s death that it was revealed he had been a swordmaster.
A handsome man with black hair and green eyes. A prince. A relaxed, easygoing personality.
He seemed destined to be the male lead, yet he suddenly retired from the stage early on, making the novel infamous for its shocking twist.
I had been one of the readers drawn in by that twist.
“A normal swordsman wouldn’t handle that many enemies and walk away fine. Wouldn’t you agree?”
“A swordmaster? Impossible.”
Aiden flatly denied my deduction.
“They were barely men who’d held a sword. You don’t know swordsmanship well, but to a commander of the imperial knights, this is child’s play.”
“Hmm… is that so?”
There was no need for me to push the point.
“Fine, we’ll leave it at that.”
I leaned forward, arms crossed.
“But, Lady, isn’t it odd for you to be out so late at night alone? Even a baron’s daughter would bring along a few guards.”
“Alone? I’m not alone. I have company.”
“S-sister, if you hold me like that…”
I pulled May closer, and her face flushed red like a shy girl. Well, she was a girl, but still.
Damn it, she’s cute.
I tore my gaze from her and eyed Aiden coldly.
“You know that’s not what I meant. Are you seriously claiming that lady beside you is your guard?”
Oh, look at him.
He knew the situation well, and yet he deliberately prodded.
Perhaps he was nervous that I had seen through his true strength.
“And you—”
Of course, I wasn’t the type to let it slide.
“Wandering with only a coachman at this late hour? You must be very confident in your abilities.”
Crackle.
A tense current sparked between us.
I’ve no reason to back down.
He might be a prince, but only a bastard son.
I, on the other hand, was the duke’s acknowledged eldest daughter and future heir.
And within the academy, status outside didn’t matter—students were equals by year. He and I were of the same class, so we stood on nearly equal ground.
Neither of us would easily yield—
“Well. There’s only one reason I’d be wandering alone so late.”
Huh?
I blinked at how easily he admitted it.
Aiden gave a bitter smile.
“My dear elder half-brother, the Second Prince, died so young. How could I go strutting in the light after that? All I can do is keep my head down quietly.”
“Oh…”
Spoken in such a pitiful tone, it tugged at my heart.
Besides, I already knew his past and his future.
Raised under constant assassination attempts, his twisted character was healed by the heroine who once saved his life. He fell for her utterly.
To the point where his once paramount value—his own survival—crumbled.
And the result was horrific.
He was ripped apart by monsters, dying in agony… right before the eyes of his long-awaited savior, Canis Escliffe.
“You’re the duke’s heir. You probably can’t relate. Few would ever welcome a bastard suddenly appearing in their family.”
“That’s… not true.”
I shook my head.
The real Canis, before I possessed her, had died at her father’s hand. Was that fate really so different?
“And you don’t get along with your half-brother, either, right?”
“Hold on, let me correct that.”
Snapped out of my sympathy, my tone turned sharp.
“It’s not that we don’t get along. It’s that I’m being unilaterally bullied.”
“Is that so?”
“What do you mean ‘is that so’? You can tell just by looking!”
“Of course. I’m not an idiot.”
He shrugged, agreeing. I looked him straight in the eye and declared:
“That’s why I decided to give him a reason. A reason to hate me.”
“A reason… to hate you?”
“That’s right.”
I crossed my arms with a self-satisfied grin.
“If someone hates me for no reason, then I’ll give them a reason. That’s my motto.”
Aiden stared blankly at me, then suddenly covered his face, shoulders shaking.
“Kh… khuh, what a remarkable motto.”
“What’s so funny about it?”
I scowled, but he burst into open laughter.
“Pfft, hahahaha! You’re nothing like what I expected. To think you’d say that there… hah!”
After muttering to himself for a while, he finally calmed and smiled faintly.
“Can I use that too?”
“Suit yourself.”
I replied indifferently.
Whoever he hated was likely the empress. That had nothing to do with me.
Beside me, May was nodding off—far past her usual bedtime.
I pulled her head gently against my shoulder so she could rest comfortably.
Seeing that, Aiden remarked, “My, my, how unexpectedly kind you are,” which was only slightly irritating.
Time passed, and the carriage gradually slowed.
“My lady, we’ve arrived.”
“All right.”
It was already half past eleven.
“Then I’ll take my leave first.”
Aiden stood and bowed at the coachman’s words.
As he stepped down, he looked back and added:
“That was more enjoyable than I expected, Lady.”
“Well, I didn’t enjoy it at all.”
“Heh, I’ll see you again.”
“Ugh.”
Did he seriously just say “Heh” out loud? He actually did!
So people really laugh like that… well, technically, this is a romance fantasy world.
“My lady, I’ll have the academy staff carry your luggage.”
“Fine.”
My things would be sent to my assigned dormitory, while May had almost nothing—so this weekend, I planned to buy her plenty.
“Mmm, sis…”
“Shh. It’s fine, sleep more.”
I scooped up the drowsy May in a princess carry and stepped down from the carriage.
Wow, really light.
Even back when my Strength stat had only been E as an F-rank hunter, I could carry a person easily. Now that it was A, she felt like a feather.
Of course, May being so small and frail for her age helped too.
But the coachman, not knowing my strength, stared wide-eyed.
“M-my lady? Are you all right?”
He gaped at me carrying May like a princess.
But I didn’t want to hand her over, so I just jerked my chin dismissively.
“I’m fine. Go rest.”
“Yes, my lady.”
Watching him leave, I lifted my gaze. Ahead loomed the building where I’d spend the next half-year.
So it begins.
The dormitory wasn’t that old, the paint unchipped and neat.
Just like my bright future.
Deep in the imperial palace, late at night.
“We failed, Your Majesty the Empress.”
The masked assassin knelt low, begging forgiveness.
The red-haired woman stared down at him coldly.
“Why?”
She had sent around a dozen men to kill Aiden.
It was a force no one could overcome alone—or so everyone thought.
Just as the empress had expected, the man spoke of a third party.
“The Third Prince made contact with Lady Escliffe.”
“…Lady Escliffe?”
The empress’s brows furrowed at the wholly unexpected name.
